Ultimate string of choice !

rustyheadcsse said:
The string side of my tinkering exploits might be hitting an end. I’ve been messing with a lot of the most highly recommended “budget” strings (Oehms, Tourna, Kirschbaum, Pro’s Pro, Gosen, Isospeed, etc.) and there is nothing on the soft poly side that holds tension, produces spin, keeps my arm comfortable, and mixes power and control quite like Pro’s Pro Hexaspin. The lifespan/tension control is truly special. I’ve cut Oehms Alu Pearl after 4 hours. I felt Hyper G drop after 5 or 6. It isn’t infrequent at all for me to get 10+ hours out of Hexaspin. Now, it is a completely insane sounding name. It only comes in really garish colors. I have to get it sent over from Europe. But I’ll be damned if it isn’t the best string I’ve put in several racquets. It is fantastic in a hybrid in my CX200 and Diadem Elevate Tour. A full bed in the CX200 OS or the POG also works great. I’m a pretty specific kind of player, who needs pretty specific things out of a string, but Pro’s Pro Hexaspin checks absolutely all of my boxes. And for something like $40/reel. Highest recommendation.
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I have Hexaspin twist and kinda hate it. But now I wanna try this.
 
rustyheadcsse said:
The string side of my tinkering exploits might be hitting an end. I’ve been messing with a lot of the most highly recommended “budget” strings (Oehms, Tourna, Kirschbaum, Pro’s Pro, Gosen, Isospeed, etc.) and there is nothing on the soft poly side that holds tension, produces spin, keeps my arm comfortable, and mixes power and control quite like Pro’s Pro Hexaspin. The lifespan/tension control is truly special. I’ve cut Oehms Alu Pearl after 4 hours. I felt Hyper G drop after 5 or 6. It isn’t infrequent at all for me to get 10+ hours out of Hexaspin. Now, it is a completely insane sounding name. It only comes in really garish colors. I have to get it sent over from Europe. But I’ll be damned if it isn’t the best string I’ve put in several racquets. It is fantastic in a hybrid in my CX200 and Diadem Elevate Tour. A full bed in the CX200 OS or the POG also works great. I’m a pretty specific kind of player, who needs pretty specific things out of a string, but Pro’s Pro Hexaspin checks absolutely all of my boxes. And for something like $40/reel. Highest recommendation.
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What color and what thickness do you use? And with what string do you hybrid it?
 
JOSHL said:
I have Hexaspin twist and kinda hate it. But now I wanna try this.
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I’ve not tried Hexaspin Twist, but I’ve heard people say the two strings have basically nothing in common and that the naming convention is pretty weird as a result. From the packaging images it looks like Twist almost has a synthetic gut style wrap around the outside of it, and I can’t imagine how that would do any good at all to what Hexaspin is.
 
Jouke said:
What color and what thickness do you use? And with what string do you hybrid it?
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I’ve been working through the Neon Yellow 1.25. But I’m about to order both the Yellow and the Orange in 1.20 direct from PP. I think a little more bite would be great, and I’m a cut it out before it breaks guy when it comes to polys anyhow so the thinner gauge doesn’t worry me at all.

I’m not too picky about which basic synthetics I’ll use for crosses. Kirschbaum’s synthetic gut is the most typical cross. OGSM and Head Synthetic are also regularly in the rotation. The Hexaspin/Kirschbaum hybrid is basically $2/job and it plays as well as anything. I prefer it to Hyper G. If you care at all about cost it’s a way better value than RPM and the performance over the first 8-10 hours isn’t far off. Much easier on the arm than a lot of the Luxilon or Technifibre polys.
 
landcookie said:
Is razor soft more comfortable (less fatigue on arm) compared to razor code?
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No. Not from my experience.
If anything - ice code to me is what a razor code soft should feel like.
Razor Soft is probably more advanced string than razor code.
Razor soft - too much tinkering to find the right tension. For the price - the duration/playability of the string when you find it, isn’t worth it in my opinion.
The pros use it. Maybe that’s who they’re for since they string daily.
 
ChrisJR3264 said:
No. Not from my experience.
If anything - ice code to me is what a razor code soft should feel like.
Razor Soft is probably more advanced string than razor code.
Razor soft - too much tinkering to find the right tension. For the price - the duration/playability of the string when you find it, isn’t worth it in my opinion.
The pros use it. Maybe that’s who they’re for since they string daily.
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Sorry, what do you mean when yo say “more advanced string than razor code”?
 
I just got a new T-Fight 305 ISO and I want to find a good string in white to match the frame color.
I am down to Tecnifibre Razor Code and Ice Code. I was using RPM blast before, tensioned 25/24 kg.
I do not want a string with too much power, that is why Ice Code is probably not the best pick, but I am still considering it because a lot of players say nice things about it.
Any suggestions? I could probably string Razor Code at lower tension or Ice Code at a bit higher, to get similar results?
 
landcookie said:
Sorry, what do you mean when yo say “more advanced string than razor code”?
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Not that a 4.0-5.0 can’t use it.
context from me is if you have the luxury to restring this after 4 hours of play like the pros- go for it. The playability of this string is poor in my opinion. There’s a sweet spot of where it performs excellent but as a rec player - I want longer playability out of my string. Razor soft to me lacks tension maintenance and playability when that tension drops
 
ChrisJR3264 said:
Not that a 4.0-5.0 can’t use it.
context from me is if you have the luxury to restring this after 4 hours of play like the pros- go for it. The playability of this string is poor in my opinion. There’s a sweet spot of where it performs excellent but as a rec player - I want longer playability out of my string. Razor soft to me lacks tension maintenance and playability when that tension drops
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How long does regular razor last you?

Mirage89 said:
I just got a new T-Fight 305 ISO and I want to find a good string in white to match the frame color.
I am down to Tecnifibre Razor Code and Ice Code. I was using RPM blast before, tensioned 25/24 kg.
I do not want a string with too much power, that is why Ice Code is probably not the best pick, but I am still considering it because a lot of players say nice things about it.
Any suggestions? I could probably string Razor Code at lower tension or Ice Code at a bit higher, to get similar results?
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Never played ice. Razor is great if you want stiff and lower powered. It plays not too different from rpm imo but feel is very different.
 
Mirage89 said:
Thank you. Decided for Razor Code White. Played about 5 hours with it, pretty impressed, very good string. I can get a lot of spin from it, contrary to what many people said.
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It is in my top picks :) i want to try the blue color as well for comparison
 
Mirage89 said:
I just got a new T-Fight 305 ISO and I want to find a good string in white to match the frame color.
I am down to Tecnifibre Razor Code and Ice Code. I was using RPM blast before, tensioned 25/24 kg.
I do not want a string with too much power, that is why Ice Code is probably not the best pick, but I am still considering it because a lot of players say nice things about it.
Any suggestions? I could probably string Razor Code at lower tension or Ice Code at a bit higher, to get similar results?
Click to expand...

Sorry I'm late in saying this but I played both strings before.
Both are quite different - Razor has a bit more bite hence more spin while Ice gives a bit extra raw power. But I'm sure by now you already got that figured out. My personal preference skew towards Razor (and has to be white, the black plays totally different).
 
Tried razor soft and hyper g round in a doubles match play.

Agree with your take on razor soft - don’t like the feel tbh but it gives good control (more than razor code I would say?) and can even temper the launch angle of tc100 even at 1.25 gauge. Maybe I need to give it more time.

Loved hyper g round off the bat. More power, more spin, same control I would say because of the spin. It feels a lot like razor code - but doesn’t pocket the ball as much. You should put it on your list!
 
landcookie said:
Tried razor soft and hyper g round in a doubles match play.

Agree with your take on razor soft - don’t like the feel tbh but it gives good control (more than razor code I would say?) and can even temper the launch angle of tc100 even at 1.25 gauge. Maybe I need to give it more time.

Loved hyper g round off the bat. More power, more spin, same control I would say because of the spin. It feels a lot like razor code - but doesn’t pocket the ball as much. You should put it on your list!
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I change my mind on Razor Soft!

Had a good 2 hour hitting session yesterday so got to try the full gamut of fh, bh, serve, returns, point play.

I could not miss my backhand (my weakest shot) with Razor Soft. It has a very low launch angle which may be the best thing for my TC100.

Serve not quite gelling however - keep dumping into the net/ go long when trying to overadjust presumably because of the launch angle. Will keep experimenting. If I can get it to gel on the FH and serve things could be interesting!
 
landcookie said:
I change my mind on Razor Soft!

Had a good 2 hour hitting session yesterday so got to try the full gamut of fh, bh, serve, returns, point play.

I could not miss my backhand (my weakest shot) with Razor Soft. It has a very low launch angle which may be the best thing for my TC100.

Serve not quite gelling however - keep dumping into the net/ go long when trying to overadjust presumably because of the launch angle. Will keep experimenting. If I can get it to gel on the FH and serve things could be interesting!
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i have 1.30 gauge of razor soft waiting for me and for the perfect racquet. I think Eubanks uses 1.30 gauges.
 
IMHO, Grapplesnake Tour M8 is what Razor Soft aspires to be, in almost every area, including price-to-quality ratio. The only comparative downside is that M8 isn't (yet) offered in a 1.20 gage, but if you don't need to go that narrow, I'd say M8 is the better string for a vast majority of use cases. Just my two cents.
 
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Trip said:
IMHO, Grapplesnake Tour M8 is what Razor Soft aspires to be, in almost every area, including price-to-quality ratio. The only comparative downside is that M8 isn't (yet) offered in a 1.20 gage, but if you don't need to go that narrow, I'd say M8 is the better string for a vast majority of use cases. Just my two cents.
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M8 is imo stiffer. Kinda original, 4g, lynx tour territory. Razor soft is different. I can hear the strings moving but its somehow still stiff. A bit weird if you ask me :p
 
galapagos said:
i have 1.30 gauge of razor soft waiting for me and for the perfect racquet. I think Eubanks uses 1.30 gauges.
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Do you need Razor Soft in 1.30? It's already so low powered and has such a low launch angle at 1.25 - probably the string with the lowest launch angle I've played with.

I also noticed I have to re-adjust the stringbed of Razor Soft after 2-3 hours, which is strange. Don't know if this means the stringbed has lost it's tension / snapback potential or if it's just a Razor Soft thing.
 
Yeah, Razor Soft isn't that hot for snapback. It's more of a linear-hitter's poly; I can see why they developed it with/for Medvedev (yet it's also a bit telling that he's been back and forth on strings lately -- hybriding what appeared to be either Razor Code White or Ice Code mains with perhaps Razor Soft or Razor Code Black crosses in Monte Carlo; then back to full-bed dark strings in Madrid, so unsure now...). I wouldn't call Razor Soft a poor string, necessarily; it just doesn't break out of the mold of most TF poly's -- good to great initial playability, but fairly short-lived and mostly overpriced. It is what it is though. If you like Razor Soft, I would say key in on the few times a year that they drop their street prices by 30+% and load up on reels at that time.
 
Trip said:
Yeah, Razor Soft isn't that hot for snapback. It's more of a linear-hitter's poly; I can see why they developed it with/for Medvedev (yet it's also a bit telling that he's been back and forth on strings lately -- hybriding what appeared to be either Razor Code White or Ice Code mains with perhaps Razor Soft or Razor Code Black crosses in Monte Carlo; then back to full-bed dark strings in Madrid, so unsure now...). I wouldn't call Razor Soft a poor string, necessarily; it just doesn't break out of the mold of most TF poly's -- good to great initial playability, but fairly short-lived and mostly overpriced. It is what it is though. If you like Razor Soft, I would say key in on the few times a year that they drop their street prices by 30+% and load up on reels at that time.
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Still trying to decide if I like the string. It oddly resembles RPM blast but round and less stiff.

Personally definitely not a flat hitter, quite the opposite. So am quite surprised that this string is piquing my interest moreso than something like a hyper G.
 
landcookie said:
Personally definitely not a flat hitter, quite the opposite. So am quite surprised that this string is piquing my interest moreso than something like a hyper G.
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Well, it could be because the feel is quite a bit better than Hyper-G, which feels much more plasticky, and launch behavior is more consistent, as Razor Soft is round, whereas Hyper-G is 5-sided.
 
My go to set up right now is Toroline Kpop. Ive tried going back to hyper G or confidential, but I have a love hate relation ship with mainly the hyper g. Toroline is hitting all the check marks for me at this time.
 
landcookie said:
Do you need Razor Soft in 1.30? It's already so low powered and has such a low launch angle at 1.25 - probably the string with the lowest launch angle I've played with.

I also noticed I have to re-adjust the stringbed of Razor Soft after 2-3 hours, which is strange. Don't know if this means the stringbed has lost it's tension / snapback potential or if it's just a Razor Soft thing.
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I would need it in angell 16x19. So might suit some other similarly spaced string patterns. Babolats maybe?
 
Trip said:
Yeah, Razor Soft isn't that hot for snapback. It's more of a linear-hitter's poly; I can see why they developed it with/for Medvedev (yet it's also a bit telling that he's been back and forth on strings lately -- hybriding what appeared to be either Razor Code White or Ice Code mains with perhaps Razor Soft or Razor Code Black crosses in Monte Carlo; then back to full-bed dark strings in Madrid, so unsure now...). I wouldn't call Razor Soft a poor string, necessarily; it just doesn't break out of the mold of most TF poly's -- good to great initial playability, but fairly short-lived and mostly overpriced. It is what it is though. If you like Razor Soft, I would say key in on the few times a year that they drop their street prices by 30+% and load up on reels at that time.
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His mains were gut for a while, possibly because of shoulder injury he got earlier this year.
 
galapagos said:
I would need it in angell 16x19. So might suit some other similarly spaced string patterns. Babolats maybe?
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I find 1.25 razor soft plenty to control my 16x19 Angell TC 100.

In fact, I am very confused by this string. Does it tick all the boxes I am looking for? Tempering the Angell launch angle, control, spin, feel, etc - yes.

Do I play my best tennis with it? I don't know - leaning towards no.

Could be the serve - the launch angle is so low I haven't really adjusted. I keep dumping kick serves into the net (when on other strings it would have gone in/long).

Is it the power level? Don't know. Because of the muted feel (presumably from the 'silicone injection') I can't really tell.
 
landcookie said:
I find 1.25 razor soft plenty to control my 16x19 Angell TC 100.

In fact, I am very confused by this string. Does it tick all the boxes I am looking for? Tempering the Angell launch angle, control, spin, feel, etc - yes.

Do I play my best tennis with it? I don't know - leaning towards no.

Could be the serve - the launch angle is so low I haven't really adjusted. I keep dumping kick serves into the net (when on other strings it would have gone in/long).

Is it the power level? Don't know. Because of the muted feel (presumably from the 'silicone injection') I can't really tell.
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Hehe Ye, this string is hard to put in one specific box.
 
@galapagos Hey man I would love yo hear your opinion in regards to choosing between black code/ Razor code and mayami big spin.
I got an Extreme tour auxetic and play exclusively on clay with a spin type of game, 5.0 level, comfort is kind of important to me.
Thanks !
 
smoove001 said:
@galapagos Hey man I would love yo hear your opinion in regards to choosing between black code/ Razor code and mayami big spin.
I got an Extreme tour auxetic and play exclusively on clay with a spin type of game, 5.0 level, comfort is kind of important to me.
Thanks !
Click to expand...
Big spin is the best for spin among the 3 you mentioned. It is also the softest and most comfortable. Ball launch is higher and it travels more up and down. A bit inconsistent at volleys. Good second serves. Lack of penetration at first serves.

Razor code is most „balanced”. No clear weak spots. For a round string great spin potential, for a stiff, control string it is forgiving and comfortable enough

Black code is kinda in between and its cheap. I wasnt getting enough spin or feel or comfort. Shines with steady strokes as it can sometimes give a little boost of power. (Or you must be fast enough to generate more topspin). Plays really well in TF40 16x19.
 
landcookie said:
Indeed.

I want to make it work so bad - but don't know if I'll ever get there. Maybe because it's one of few strings which doesn't cause much arm fatigue/soreness after!
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I have been playing with razor soft 1.25 and 1.3 in a few racquets now and must say I am very close to making it my go to and getting a reel of it.

Definitely prefer it over regular. The ball pocketing / ultra low launch angle just works in my TC100.

Will also likely go 1.25. 1.3 is a little harsh and loses some of its pocketing magic.

Plays like rpm blast V2.0
 
have someone tried 1.25 with 1.20 hybrid? Fonseca and Korda are using this „concept”. So i tried one as well (with razor soft 1.25/1.20)
In short: i didnt like it but it was fun

 
galapagos said:
have someone tried 1.25 with 1.20 hybrid? Fonseca and Korda are using this „concept”. So i tried one as well (with razor soft 1.25/1.20)
In short: i didnt like it but it was fun

Click to expand...
I’m currently maining 1.30/1.25 poly tour strike in my Regna. Personally, I love the idea if it fits your needs. I wanted a bit more swing weight and mass in the string bed for this frame along with lowering my launch angle, but not being boardy. Feel like the overall string bed is more lively with this setup.. more spin, power difference negligible and definitely more controlled launch angle. I can create angles more easily as well. Using 1.25 full bed in my 97D and just tweaking tension.
 
Torps said:
I’m currently maining 1.30/1.25 poly tour strike in my Regna. Personally, I love the idea if it fits your needs. I wanted a bit more swing weight and mass in the string bed for this frame along with lowering my launch angle, but not being boardy. Feel like the overall string bed is more lively with this setup.. more spin, power difference negligible and definitely more controlled launch angle. I can create angles more easily as well. Using 1.25 full bed in my 97D and just tweaking tension.
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1.30 with 1.25 sounds much better than 1.25/1.20 :) i usually prefer more control than power but forgiveness in some frames is too much limited with thicker gauge so your direction could be it!

Also i tried fullbed razor code 1.20 but it was even worse than this haha. From 1.20 i think i only liked solinco hyper g and tour bite.
 
smithie said:
@galapagos whats your overall take on Toroline’s offerings, and where do they stack up on your tier list?
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I like the k-pop. Its a good string that reminds me of solinco tour bite mixed with ultra cable. Not the best for feel but really good in performance.
I also liked their super toro and toro toro string which was much better in linear control compared to k-pop which is more „spinny”. Its kinda „softer” lynx tour. More responsive but the launch is very predictable and through the court. I have some videos coming about those two. Those are my favourites.

My top strings for now (random order)
1. Head Lynx tour
2. Luxilon Original
3. Toroline K-pop
4.tecnifibre Razor code white
5. Tecnifibre razor soft (mixed feelings here)
6. Luxilon Original
7. Solinco Tour Bite
8. Solinco Confidential
9. Mayami Tour Hex
10. Diadem Solstice Power
11. Signum Pro Firestorm
12. Tourna Silver 7 Tour
 
Soo...I don't really know when I will force myself to review to you guys the Yonex Poly Tour rev on my yt channel which was requested months ago (sorry!).
So decided that I will do it the oldchool way here :)

YONEX POLY TOUR REV review!

so I tried this string in Percept 97H, Vcore 98 and in hybrids (with PTP in 100D and Vcore 98 305)

what can I say? I will start that this is not my favourite Yonex string. From Yonex I would probably pick PTP. Rev is stiffer than the ptp. Quite similar in stiffness to poly tour strike. Maybe a tad stiffer than Confidential. I think Yonex was aiming to steal some RPM blast users over to their camp but imo those strings are not even close. Totally different vibes. RPM is a bit faster in response while rev is a bit more dead and "plasticy". This dead feeling is giving you slightly more control and less power but to be honest I didnt experience that much more spin to really pick it over the Poly Tour Pro.

On a positive side I think this string for a shaped profile is very consistent in response. It's quite easy to learn the string and predict the launch and the amount of spin it can give back. However I wish the values were a bit bigger (in power and spin). Is this a good string? Ye, of course. I think I liked it even more with ptp hybrid which gave me slightly more spin and pocketing sensation. HOWEVER taking into consideration that those are not the cheapest strings on the market then I would honestly look somewhere else (or just stick to PTP which is softer, has similar control and similar spin with IMO better touch and feel). If you want more spin then Confidential and Lynx Tour are a bit better (and slightly cheaper I think?)

oh - btw! I really dig the mint color of this string! looks AMAZING in percept line.

final score: 5.8/10

see you around! :)
 
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galapagos said:
Soo...I don't really know when I will force myself to review to you guys the Yonex Poly Tour rev on my yt channel which was requested months ago (sorry!).
So decided that I will do it the oldchool way here :)

YONEX POLY TOUR REV review!

so I tried this string in Percept 97H, Vcore 98 and in hybrids (with PTP in 100D and Vcore 98 305)

what can I say? I will start that this is not my favourite Yonex string. From Yonex I would probably pick PTP. Rev is stiffer than the ptp. Quite similar in stiffness to poly tour strike. Maybe a tad stiffer than Confidential. I think Yonex was aiming to steal some RPM blast users over to their camp but imo those strings are not even close. Totally different vibes. RPM is a bit faster in response while rev is a bit more dead and "plasticy". This dead feeling is giving you slightly more control and less power but to be honest I didnt experience that much more spin to really pick it over the Poly Tour Pro.

On a positive side I think this string for a shaped profile is very consistent in response. It's quite easy to learn the string and predict the launch and the amount of spin it can give back. However I wish the values were a bit bigger (in power and spin). Is this a good string? Ye, of course. I think I liked it even more with ptp hybrid which gave me slightly more spin and pocketing sensation. HOWEVER taking into consideration that those are not the cheapest strings on the market then I would honestly look somewhere else (or just stick to PTP which is softer, has similar control and similar spin with IMO better touch and feel). If you want more spin then Confidential and Lynx Tour are a bit better (and slightly cheaper I think?)

oh - btw! I really dig the mint color of this string! looks AMAZING in percept line.

final score: 5.8/10

see you around! :)
Click to expand...
Oof rough review for the Rev. Did you only try the mint? or the orange as well?
 
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